What is The Invention of Lying about?
Set in a world where the concept of lying doesn't exist, a loser changes his lot when he invents lying and uses it to get ahead.
Does it have a happy ending? (spoiler-safe)
Yes. It lands on a happy note.
A lonely man discovers the whimsical power of deceit in a world where honesty is the only policy.
Satirical and romantic, with dry wit. A date-night pick at a measured pace. Emotionally it carries some weight.
Not on a US subscription service as of Oct 28, 2026.
The Invention of Lying parents guide
It stays inside its PG-13, with some innuendo or implied sex and mild language.
Rated PG-13, but by what is on screen our estimate is fine from about 10.
- Scare
- Not scary
- Jump scares
- None noted
- Gore
- No gore
- Violence
- No real violence
- Sex and nudity
- Mild
- Mild means innuendo, or sex implied off screen, with no nudity.
- Language
- Mild
- Mild words like damn, hell or crap.
How we rate: an AI reads what is known about each title and tags it 0 to 3; we check the tags against a hand-rated set and correct them by hand when readers tell us. Estimates, not a scene-by-scene review. Spot a mistake? Tell us.
Cast and crew
Directed byRicky Gervais, Matthew Robinson
StarringRicky Gervais, Jennifer Garner, Louis C.K., Rob Lowe, Jonah Hill, Jeffrey Tambor
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More like this feeling
Prompts we typed into CouchRot, and the lists that share its tags.
- “funny but not stupid, under two hours”
- “a fun halloween movie, not too scary”
- “a movie that will make me cry”
Lists with the same feel: Gentle and Date night.
Five more like The Invention of Lying
Say the mood. Five picks with where they stream, right here.
Uses the TMDB API; not endorsed or certified by TMDB. Intensity, content, tone and pace tags are CouchRot's own.